Do you think Females are harder to potty train than Males?

[bonesmama]

Hi all! We got our female in March and she will be 5 mos old next week. The problem is that she is making NO progress with potty training-NONE-ZIP-ZILCH-ZERO!!! I mean, she is totally oblivious! She is very rarely home alone since I work part time and my hubby is unemployed at the moment, so she is on a strict schedule that never wavers. We can be outside for over an hour telling her to go potty, and she will come inside and pee anyway- and almost immediately! It is as if she thinks inside is out and outside is in! So now that I've vented,lol- here is my question. She is my 7th dog, but my first female puppy- do you think there is a difference between the sexes as far as the ease of potty training? With my males, they all gave a signal that they were ready to go, but she can be doing almost anything and just pees without warning. I thought my male Frenchie was hard to train, but by this age he was so dependable we were able to take him on trips with us. I know every dog is different, but we are getting really frustrated! We've been successful very quickly with all our other dogs without having to use bells or treats, I would be happy if I thought she was even beginning to get it. Aaaarrrrrgggghhhhh!!!!!!

[Samia Blaine]

hi, i'm sorry you're feeling frustrated and overwhelmed. it has not been my experience that females are any harder or easier to train than males. frenchies can be very stubborn. imo a 4 1/2 month old puppy is rarely reliable. are you crate training. the less accidents the puppy has in the house, the easier it is for them to catch on.

i know you said you don't want to use treats but perhaps you need to. here is how i have housebroken all my frenchies. immediately upon waking...outside! immediately after playing...outside! after eating...outside! after drinking...outside! when i have them outside, after they have urinated or had a bm...i jump around and get all excited (i call this the pee dance) and animated and give them a treat. then it's back into the house. if she doesn't go, back into her crate and try again in a little while. if you don't crate train, then my suggestion to you is the tether method. a dog/puppy should not have full reign until it can be trusted not to urinate in the house. go back to housebreaking 101. in other words, go back to square 1 as she obviously hasn't done anything to suggest otherwise.

for me, using the above method, i have successfully housebroke (not totally reliable as puppies play so hard they don't want to take the time to go outside or "forget) all my frogs (both male and female) in about 1 month. the key is not to let them have the opportunity to go inside. whether it be by crating or tethering. my current foster is 6 years old. he spent the first 6 years of his life crated. he urinated and deficated in his crate and it dropped through the bottom. he housebroke in 4 weeks by doing what i wrote above. the first week, i took him out every 2 hours during the day and 4 hours at night. the next week we upped the time. when he wasn't in his crate he was tethered to me. he never had an accident in the house. of course it took a little more time to get him to not try and mark...but that's for another thread!

good luck!

[bonesmama]

Thanks for the reply- that is EXACTLY what I am doing minus the treats! Which is why I am so frustrated.....as I said, this isn't my first puppy and I am (or at least I consider myself to be ) VERY patient! The thing that baffles me is that I feel like she thinks is it INSIDE where she is supposed to go.....I have been singing "let's go out and pee" songs, and repeating "make a pee" when we're outside until I hear it in my dreams! Lol!! We spend more time outside than in- I haven't gotten a thing done around here since we got her in March!!

[Samia Blaine]

i don't understand i guess. is she peeing in her crate? is she peeing ouside and then again upon returning inside? if you are doing all the things we just discussed...perhaps (if you feed dry) you could give her a piece of kibble when she goes...why are you adverse to using treats/kibble in your training? most frogs i know are extremely food motivated.

[Tatiana]

Everything that Samia said is spot-on... I myself employ the tethering method for house-breaking all of my dogs since I have the advantage of working from home... While I don't own any crates, I do set up a "nursery" in a well-ventilated bathroom and use a baby-gate as an enclosure... I pretty much adhere to a strict feeding and walking schedule, never allowing the puppy to roam unsupervised around the household at any time to prevent accidents from ever happening... So the one piece of advice I can offer is to try the "lap" technique when you have free time at home... I suggest doing it after the breakfast meal when the dog really should have to go... You first run the dog out for the early morning meal, then you feed her, and then you keep the dog tethered on a leash and draped across your lap for at least an hour-and-a-half... Sit at your computer, read the news, or do some other task if you have to, but make sure that you're seated and that the dog remains on your lap no matter how much they squirm, squeal or fuss... Watch the timer, and then carry the puppy outdoors and prompt her to "go potty"... She should immediately squat and relieve herself, but if she puts up any resistance or sniffs excessively and ignores your command, then pick her up and carry her back inside, and place her back on your lap for another half hour... Same thing... Carry the dog outside, set her down, and tell her to "go potty"... Hopefully, she'll go as instructed, but if you're met with further resistance you'll have to pretty much devote several more hours of keeping her on your lap and running her outdoors every half hour until she manages to pee and poo outdoors... Yes, it's labor intensive and it requires you to devote a great deal of time and effort to instill the message, but it's necessary to do this until it "clicks" and the puppy learns that you want her to go outdoors...

I don't find the females to be more difficult to house-break than the males, but in my experience, they've taken a couple of weeks longer to withhold themselves for several hours... When I introduce a puppy into my home, I pretty much adhere to a very stringent schedule and walk the puppy very frequently, praising them each and every time they do their business outdoors... If they don't pee when prompted, I pick them up, bring them back inside, keep them tethered to me, and then run them outdoors again 15 to 20 minutes later... The puppy must pee outdoors before being allowed to go back to the nursery and rest... It's a battle of wills, but I am supreme bully bitch in my home and will do everything possible to prevent any dog from peeing in my home...

Your puppy needs to "get the message" that it's outdoors and not indoors where she has to go... The tethering / lap / frequent walk method is the most humane way of succeeding... It's going to take several days of frequent walks on the leash, and your puppy will certainly try to test your patience, but if you're consistent she'll eventually succeed if you praise her or dispense little treats.

Good luck!

[bonesmama]

Thanks Tatiana- I basically DO do everything I've ever heard of, I keep her on my lap alot- though I don't have the time to devote to that as much as you, if she is not on my lap she is in her crate, which is in our miniscule kitchen with a gate, and the only time she is allowed to play with her brothers is when I'm sure she is "empty" lol- and then it is straight out again. this morning we started giving her a reward along with the praise, so hopefully this will help. I had been suggesting it to my husband for a long time but he has this weird thing about treat rewards-( he wants them to listen out of love)-- but I argued that the way to a DOG as well as a MAN's heart is through his stomache, lol! So we'll see, time will tell!

[karin hamlin]

Do you think there may be something that your pup is afraid of outside? That does not let her relax enough to potty? Maybe pay closer attention to this because I know Frenchies can be very strong willed but something is not right with that. Even without the treats, (which I strongly believe in treat rewards. sometimes love is not enough:() the average dog will catch on with praise. Hmmm.... I'll have to think about this alittle more.
Good Luck!

[Brenda WAlker]

I find that neither is that hard to potty train, my last litter of pups went to new homes at 16 weeks old and their new family had them train within a week and a half, of course I suggest liver treats, and they love them, you might have to give them a treat , so she learns to expect them if she does what you want her to do.

[bonesmama]

This pup is afraid of NOTHING!! She spends most of her day outside, but when we come inside -even for a second to get a drink of water or something, that is when she pees- after being out for hours, I am not exaggerating! She even pees in her crate! We starting giving treats, so we'll see if that helps. I have never had a pup like this!

[jill]

Is there any possibility that she has a urinary tract infection?? She may very well be struggling with housebreaking regardless but if she has a UTI on top of it, she won't have any control and can't be expected to. One of the symptoms is frequent urination, often without notice. Might be worth having a urine specimen looked at by your vet. UTI's are pretty common in little girls. Just a thought :) Hang in there!

[bonesmama]

Thanks Jill- she actually did have a UI when she was very young, but she goes for hours without peeing, then comes in the house and does it- she doesn't even pee on walks. I am sure she is confused, I think she thinks that the house is the place to go! Yesterday my husband told her to go pee, and she ran up the stairs to the door- he took her and put her back on the ground, and she finally peed! We praised her and gave her treats so maybe it will sink in soon.

[jill]

This may have been suggested (sorry if I'm repeating..)but what if you bought 1 or 2 pee pads and only used them in the yard where you want her to pee?? Once she pees on them (they're scented to entice her to pee there)I would reuse them (gross I know) untill she starts heading for that spot to pee. Make sure you got the treats. :)